Basic Life Support
Basic Life Support (BLS) – A level of medical care which is used for victims of illnesses or injuries until they can be given full medical care at a hospital. The focus of BLS care is to promote adequate blood circulation in addition to breathing through a clear airway.
We have BLS practitioners with the following designations:
Occupational First Aid III
Skills include, how to deal with obstructed airways, breathing distress, oxygen administration, bleeding control, shock, AED use, and one and two person CPR. Continual patient assessment, spinal immobilization, upper and lower limb splinting and minor wound care are also within scope. An OFA III is used extensively in British Columbia, where this training is required to practice in industry.
Emergency Medical Responder
In most Canadian jurisdictions, EMR is the 1st of 3 levels of EMS training. In addition to the scope of an OFA III, an EMR’s skills include blood glucose monitoring and basic medication administration such as oral glucose and ASA. EMRs are also orientated to ambulance operation and have training in the basic methods of managing medical, trauma and obstetric emergencies.
Emergency Medical Technician / Primary Care Paramedic
The most commonly used level of EMS personnel, they receive classroom training along with practicums in clinical, rural, and urban settings. They are able to provide all the BLS skills of an EMR as well as more advanced techniques that include arrhythmia identification, defibrillation, advanced airways, peripheral IV access, and administration of many life-saving and pain control medications.